This summer has been one of the most eventful and impactful 3 months I have experienced. With little time to relax, I have been surprisingly reflective and appreciative of what and who I have around me. I’ve learned that hard work pays off, that what you give out is what you get back, that one interaction can change someone’s day or even their life, and that I am extremely happy with who I am and where I am in my life.
Jaxon, my dog, and one of my greatest supporters.
Good Things Are Happening
I started working after school ended. I was back at Magic Mountain–like Chuck E. Cheese but with a not-as-scary mascot and a better play gym–for about 3 days until I had to resign. Around this time I was given great news: I was going to be a camp counselor for 3 different summer camps that I absolutely adore, I got a full-time research position at the Wexner Medical Center and a part-time research position with the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, I was going to be a General Chemistry Lab TA, I would be attending a leadership conference with a student government organization from Ohio State, and my family and I would be going on a vacation to California to visit my grandparents. This news also meant that I would be in Ohio every other week of the summer which is why I resigned from my position and began to appreciate the little time I was able to spend with my friends and family. I realized how grateful I should be to have a group of extremely supportive, caring, and genuinely amazing people surrounding me.
Summer Camp Love
Being surrounded by children was life-changing. The strength, intelligence, and creativity that youth possess is truly inspiring and I want to work with them for the rest of my life. Camp Kesem was the first summer camp I attended this summer. It is a national program with chapters at college campuses throughout the states with the goal of helping children through and beyond a parent’s cancer. Through this camp, I’ve learned how to empathize and understand people’s stories, to listen and learn, to care for people that I may only see for 15 minutes of my life, and to open myself up to new experiences. The Kesem love and magic is real and life-changing*. The second summer camp I attended was the Olentangy Summer Strings Camp (my 10th-year anniversary at the camp and 5th-year anniversary as a counselor) which gives students a chance to play orchestral music with students from around their school district while participating in outdoor activities. My third camp was my old high school’s band camp which is a week-long intensive training camp for marching band which also promotes team-building and youth leadership. 3 words: youth are amazing; I am and will forever be inspired by their talent and passion. These camps have taught me how to be a problem-solver, an empathizer, and a friend. I am forever grateful for the people who I’ve met through these programs because they are the motivators that inspire me to push forward and be myself.
Volunteer Work
When I wasn’t at summer camp, I was working in the lab. It is amazing to be working with such intelligent students and staff. I’ve never felt so underqualified in my life than during lab meetings but I didn’t mind one bit because I absorbed whatever I could. There was never a day in the lab that I didn’t learn something new. I am currently carrying out a couple of my own independent projects on sarcoma cancer and I am happy to be in the position I am now where I am a learner, a student, and a researcher. Over the summer I have also been planning off-campus events for residential students at Ohio State. As the Executive Coordinator of OSU’s Residence Hall Advisory Council (RHAC), I am in charge of planning monthly off-campus and on-campus events for students to enhance personal development and encourage service in the community. Through this, I have become an intense organizer and time manager as well as an even bigger fan of Google Drive.
Reflection
I discovered many things about myself this summer: I am interested in the way people think (I want to know people’s experiences, their stories, and their feelings), I miss music and dance, I live and learn and let go, I want to work with children in the future, I absolutely adore science, I love everyone around me, and I am completely content with my life. I’ve learned so much in these past 3 months and I cannot wait for the next season to start.
Respect. Discover. Learn. Understand. Create. Impact. Repeat.
* for more info about Camp Kesem visit: https://www.campkesem.org/find-a-camp/camp-kesem-at-the-ohio-state-university or donate at: https://donate.kesem.org/fundraiser/1742759